Google searches for “business cash flow problems” rise by a massive 120%
It wouldn’t be harsh to describe 2022 as tough on UK businesses. Ian Stewart, Deloitte’s Chief Economist in the UK, has reflected in a Reaction article: “2022 witnessed the biggest inflation shock the world has seen in more than 40 years.”
As a result, central banks aggressively hiked interest rates. Stewart has cited particular problems facing the UK: “Brexit has reduced the supply of lower labour from the EU and, by adding costs and complexity, weakened trade with the EU.”
This was the backdrop as, according to a HR News report, Google searches for the term “business cash flow problems” saw mammoth year-on-year growth of 120% between October 2021 and October 2022.
What is the UK’s economic situation at the moment?
The British business scene is currently beset by numerous issues. One of them is that, since the COVID-19 pandemic’s onset, over half a million workers have retired early. This has hurt the productive capacity of the economy, which is also attracting little investment.
UK real household disposable incomes have also been shrinking, with the Office for Budget Responsibility expecting these to be 6.5% lower by 2023’s end than was the case as 2021 came to a close.
This reduced spending power will inevitably lead Britons to rein in their spending, with adverse implications for the UK’s businesses and GDP growth.
A deep dive into some worrying Google search trends
The 120% figure has been unearthed from the Google Ads Keyword Planner tool – which has also revealed that, from October 2021 to October 2022, Google searches for “cash flow problems solutions” and “cash flow issues” soared by 136% and 80% respectively.
Similar terms increasingly used by Google searchers during the same period were “cash flow problem”, “solving cash flow problems”, “ways to improve cash flow” and “how to improve cash flow” – where the respective growth rates were 50%, 33%, 24% and 22%.
Unfortunately, it doesn’t look like the UK economic picture will improve soon. Though the economy did eke out 0.1% of growth in November, economists have suggested that this could simply push back the expected UK recession rather than prevent it.
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) has noted that, over the three-month period to the end of November, UK GDP fell by 0.3%. The 0.1% figure also reported by the ONS “can hardly disguise the likelihood that whilst recessionary conditions may be shallow, an economic contraction is underway,” Raymond James strategist Jeremy Batstone-Carr has told CNBC.
How can British businesses react effectively to the economic instability?
If you run one of these businesses and are indeed struggling to keep its cash flow healthy, rest assured that you could resort to several cost-effective measures.
For example, you could relocate your business to a place where it would – at least theoretically – be easier for you to source the employees and supplies your company requires for optimum success.
Why not book a free consultation with Office Freedom to see how this office broker could help you to find a serviced office in Central London?
